Investigators comb the area in and around 2634 Main Cross Street in Waynesville, Ind., Sunday. / AP/Joe Harpring, The Republic

by Michael Boren, The Indianapolis Star

by Michael Boren, The Indianapolis Star

WAYNESVILLE, Ind. - The row of one-story homes nestled off this side of Indiana farmland at first resembles most neighborhoods.

Kids swing and play soccer in backyards. Families exchange Mother's Day gifts. A man mows the lawn.

But other signs illustrate a darker side: The three dogs chain-linked to a fence outdoors, barking furiously at anyone passing by. The "No Trespassing" warnings that cover many windows. And the yellow sign reading "Disaster Area" on the back of a home, where a four-door sedan sits oddly parked in the lawn amid piles of trash.

It's at this home south of Columbus, about 50 miles south of Indianapolis, where authorities made a grisly discovery Saturday night: a quadruple homicide.

Authorities said Sunday that the four people found shot to death in this southern Indiana home were a couple who lived there and two of their male friends.

Daniel Burton, the 27-year-old son of the woman who was killed, arrived home from work Saturday night and found two of the victims dead in the living room of his Waynesville, Ind., home, Bartholomew County Sheriff Mark Gorbett said. He said Burton called police, who found the other two victims, including Burton's 53-year-old mother, Katheryn Burton.

Three men were found shot to death in the living room of the home. A fourth victim lay fatally shot in a separate room, in bed.

It's the most gruesome crime to hit rural Bartholomew County, Ind., since another quadruple homicide shocked residents there nearly 15 years ago. By Sunday evening, the killer or killers remained on the loose, as visibly exhausted sheriff's officials remained tight-lipped about the progress of their investigation.

"We've been working around the clock," said Gorbett said in a brief statement Sunday afternoon. He would not take questions. "We will continue to do so until we can bring those responsible to justice."

The victims in Waynesville were Katheryn Burton, 53, and Thomas W. Smith, 39, who lived in the home; Aaron Cross, 41; and Shawn Burton, 41. Cross and Shawn Burton were from Columbus, Ind. Shawn and Katheryn Burton are not related.

"We are following up on all leads at this point and we have no one in custody at this time," Gorbett said.

A motive remains unclear, but some neighbors suspect drugs may have been involved. Those rumors add to the mystery of this small neighborhood, where residents proudly speak of how close they are but also quietly mention rumors of strange incidents occurring.

"This neighborhood's always had a little bit of that," said Jane Rayburn, 59, who's lived there for about 12 years.

She owns a gun and said she typically feels safe. But in the past week, she saw something that frightened her - something that made her very "uncomfortable," she said, and caused her to go inside and lock the doors.

Stevie Furkin, the half brother of victim Shawn Burton, lives next-door to where the homicide occurred and suspects that drugs played a role.

Furkin, 55, claims he had smelled anhydrousammonia coming from next door in the past. It's one of the main ingredients used to make methamphetamine. Furkin said his half brother had struggled with addiction to the illegal stimulant and was known as "the little cook" for cooking meth.

"If I broke down, anybody in the neighborhood would give me a ride to town," said Stevie Furkin, who is the half brother of victim Shawn Burton and lives next door to where the slayings occurred.

But, he said, "there's some bad apples and bad crowds."

In March 2007, Shawn Burton was arrested on several charges, including illegal possession of anhydrous ammonia. But it's unclear whether that was used to make meth.

On Sunday afternoon, a police officer carefully placed a flashlight from Furkin's porch into a brown bag. Authorities would not say whether it was evidence, but Furkin said he believed they were trying to find fingerprints. He also said police searched his home overnight.

Speculating on the nature of the homicide, Furkin said, "It might have been planned, might not have. I wouldn't have no idea." But he said he doesn't worry that there will be more victims: "They're all dead."

Other neighbors told The Indianapolis Star that they occasionally waved at or spoke with the victims who lived in the home but never suspected anything suspicious. Many said they could barely sleep after knowing that such a horrific crime occurred so close.

"It's almost unthinkable," said Kathy Carroll, 57, who's lived in the neighborhood for six years. "You hear it on the news. But when it touches near home, it gives a different atmosphere to it."

"It's such a small place, you know?" said Fugate, 60, Columbus. "Nothing ever goes on here. But it did last night."

The weekend's killings brought back bad memories for some of another case of quadruple slayings in the area nearly 15 years ago.

In September 1998, a young mother, her two children and a 12-year-old family friend were found slain and buried in shallow graves beside the East Fork of the White River. Robert J. Bassett Jr. was convicted in July 2001 of the killings and was sentenced to life in prison.

Fugate was still struggling Sunday to come to terms with the latest slayings.

"What gets me is why in the h--- would anybody want to kill all four of them?" Fugate said. "That's something I can't understand."